No One Wants to Wake Up At 5 a.m. to Work Out With Gabrielle Union, and We Can’t Imagine Why

No One Wants to Wake Up At 5 a.m. to Work Out With Gabrielle Union, and We Can’t Imagine Why

“I definitely put those invitations out for those early workouts, but sadly most people don’t RSVP.”

Gabrielle Union is a morning workout kind of woman. Does she love waking up at 5 a.m. to squeeze in a workout? Not always, but she usually does it anyway.

"It’s weird most people don’t want to get up at 5 a.m. to work out, which is really bizarre," Union tells Woman's Day with a laugh. "So more often than not I’m alone. But I’m always down to have more people join me, and I definitely put those invitations out for those early workouts, but sadly most people don’t RSVP."

Between having a 1-year-old daughter and a busy work schedule, Union has to fit in her workouts wherever she has time for them. Currently, she trains at Heart & Hustle in Los Angeles at hours when most of the city is still asleep. On the weekends, however, she likes to take a different approach to fitness by going on hikes with her 1-year-old daughter Kaavia and her friends.

“Hiking with your baby strapped to your body adds some weight," she says. "It’s like doing weighted lunges as you go uphill. It allows you to get your heart rate up and have your baby physically on you, and that creates closeness." In addition to the sweat, Union appreciates the bond that a good hike can create. "Sometimes hiking with friends, whether it’s in silence or you're venting or strategizing or problem solving or sharing solutions — it’s the best, it’s like self care with others."

And self care, specifically self empathy, is something that Union takes seriously. Although she's dedicated to her workouts and living a healthy lifestyle, she's all about being kind to herself, listening to her body, and giving it what it needs.

"Sometimes that alarm goes off, and I just make an executive decision that I need more sleep, I need more rest, or I need to just lay there," she says. "And that’s OK. You have to let yourself off the hook."

When she's in need of a little extra early morning motivation, she focuses on how her workout will impact the rest of her day. "I do try to remind myself that on the days I workout before work I’m able to work out a lot of anxiety and stress and worry and overthinking things at the gym before I get to work and I misdirect some of that at innocent folks," she says. "It allows me to have more peace and a little bit more grace, a lot more compassion, and my head is just a little clearer."

And now Union is sharing her mindset and her passion for fitness by becoming a partner with FitOn, a free fitness app that has workout videos and tips. Users will be able to download the app and follow along to some of Union's workouts. Before this, Union had tried her fair share of trendy workouts. She says she got pretty into CrossFit at one point before realizing she was too competitive and was pushing her body too hard. She's tried Cardio Barre, dance, spinning, and yoga, too. "I’m no different," she says. "You read about a new thing and wonder if that’s the magic, the equation to eternal youth, to my fitness dreams." But she tends to try out the latest fitness crazes for fun with friends and sticks to strength training, resistance training, and a bit of cardio as her workout staples. She says her main fitness mentality is about "not taking yourself too seriously," and making sure you're taking the time to move your body.